New look for buses to mark changes

The vehicles on Reading Buses’ 23 and 24 routes are now “berry” coloured instead of pink.

Four buses are being refurbished and given the new livery and will come into service between Monday, when new timetables begin, and mid-October.

Each vehicle will have a new interior, seating, USB charging points and free superfast wi-fi. There will be more space for buggies and wheelchairs.

Tony Pettitt, interim chief executive of Reading Buses, said: “The old pink double decks have been a bright and eye-catching advertisement for buses north of the river for a good few years.

“However, the new colours, livery and name should help make the berry buses even more noticeable. The refurbishment should also help to increase comfort and user friendliness for customers.

“The berry colour scheme will make it easier for customers of the two circular and inter-working services to identify their buses at a glance.

“We are, of course, mindful that while we are having to make tough timetable decisions on these routes, we still believe that investment will make these services more customer-friendly, leading to a stabilisation and then, hopefully, growth of customer numbers. With more customers, these services will have a greater chance of growing in frequency.”